Senator Alan Peter Cayetano on Monday dismissed calls to abolish the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK), saying youth leaders should be supported and mentored.

Cayetano said former SK leaders should also encourage and help their successors navigate the world of governance so they will not be exposed to corruption in the process.

“Madalas nating sabihin na i-abolish na natin iyang SK dahil naging breeding ground of corruption. Eh sino ba ang nagtuturo sa kanila ng corruption? Hindi ba yung matatanda din? Bakit yung bata ang i-abolish? Baligtad (We always say that SK should be abolished because it became a breeding ground of corruption. But who teach them to be corrupt? Is it not the elders also? Why should be the young ones be abolished? It’s the other way around),” Cayetano said in an interview after casting his vote for the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections at Cipriano P. Sta. Teresa Elementary School in Taguig City.

“Ituloy natin ang SK, pero tulungan, tutukan, at suportahan natin sila. ‘Wag natin sila iwanan. Give advice to them, at pag-pray natin sila (Let us continue SK, but let us also help, monitor, and support them. We should not leave them alone. Give advice to them and let us pray for them),” he added.

While it is not the job of everyone, Cayetano said mentoring SK leaders is “the concern of all of us.”

“Ito ang social media generation kaya iba rin ang takbo nila (This is the social media generation that’s why they work differently). I’m excited for them, but I always want to make sure there is accountability,” he said.

Cayetano said the barangay is the most important institution in the society serving as a “family to communities.”

In the 1970s, Kabataang Barangay was established which became the SK through Republic Act (RA) No. 10742 or the SK Reform Act of 2015.

RA 11768 or the SK Governance Reforms and Compensation Law was passed in 2022, seeking to reimagine the role of the SK in the skills development, youth employment, and learning. (PNA)